I have a love/hate relationship with Travel Channel's paranormal investigation series Ghost Adventures. The show is very entertaining, but not always for the reasons you would think. The trio of investigators led by Zak Bagans are loud, obnoxious, and afraid of their own shadows. They run into a building screaming their heads off at the ghosts, only to start screaming "Dude/Bro/Dude/Bro/Dude/Bro!" over and over again when something--anything--happens. On the one hand, they get into a lot of locations that are very difficult to gain permission to investigate. On the other hand, I find myself rolling my eyes and laughing at them every episode. Still I watch because, at the very least, their opening historical investigation is very compelling.
Now Zak Bagans has a new paranormal investigation series called Paranormal Challenge. Every week, two teams of paranormal investigators from all over America are brought to a large allegedly haunted facility to compete in an evidence gathering competition. The teams are judged on their use of historical research, their teamwork, their use of technology, and the audio and visual evidence they collect during the investigation. Zak is joined by two rotating paranormal experts, as well as permanent judge David Schrader (author and host of Darkness Radio), to watch the investigation as it unfolds live over a four hour period.
While the invited teams are very hit or miss, I find myself drawn to this show. There's something about this format that really puts the emphasis on the skeptical side of paranormal investigation. Too often--Ghost Adventures included--these programs insist on providing even the most unbelievable piece of evidence as some conquest from their investigation. It's ridiculous. No, I don't think the wind blowing through the open window sounds like the cry of an infant in a nursery. Try again.
Here, the expert judges are constantly critiquing the teams' investigation skills. While Zak Bagans is still very likely to jump on any possible lead with arms wide open, the other judges point out equipment errors, poor use of research, and logical explanations for most of the phenomena the teams experience. The more believable evidence feels credible because the experts will try to debunk it as soon as the teams leave the judging room.
Take, for instance, a horrifying EVP from the episode featuring the Ohio State Reformatory. One team believed they found an EVP--Electronic Voice Phenomenon, or otherworldly audio if you will--of a man saying "No" while the investigator wasn't talking. The voice sounded nothing like the investigator who was using a solo camera harness to explore the attic of the prison. While the judges were split on the evidence at first--Zak and award-winning EVP researcher Debby Constantino believing the evidence, David Schrader and Mark Constantino questioning it, they took the time to debunk the audio in a straight forward manner. It was refreshing to see even a seemingly credible piece of evidence be shot down through skepticism.
If I have any issues with the show, it is the editing. Unfortunately for us watching at home, the team that wins the challenge will get almost twice as much screen time as the team that loses. If you can't figure out the winner halfway through the episode based on that alone, I envy your reality TV innocence. It doesn't hurt the program that much. It would just help to build suspense if the time and judges' commentary was split more evenly.
Paranormal Challenge is a fun program that takes the skepticism and intense evaluation of Ghost Hunters Academy and mixes it with professionalism and experience in the field. While none of the teams--so far--quite have the name recognition of TAPS (who does at this point?), most of these teams have been invited onto the show for good reasons: they get the job done. Whether they're quiet and methodical (and almost assuredly losing a show judged by screaming instigating investigator Zak Bagans) or loud and aggressive, the teams demonstrate knowledge and experience that often gets glossed over on other investigation series. It's a must-watch show for fans of this field.
